Increasingly, in today's very unstable conditions, questions arise: what is autonomous electricity for a private house, cottage or how to solve the problem of uninterrupted electricity supply to our home. There are two ways. The first is to connect to existing electrical networks. The second is to buy an electric generator, an autonomous source of electricity, so that you have your own power station in the house.
But even if you think that there is no need for a personal small power station so far, then a portable electric generator will not be out of place in the event of a power outage, and no one is safe from emergency situations.
Modern life is impossible without electricity. Its absence violates the rhythm, the routine of our lives, and malfunctions can even become a threat to the life and health of the residents of the house. Of course, professionals must solve the problems of electricity supply. Nevertheless, there are things that every owner of a house, cottage, cottage should know.
Connecting to power grids, unfortunately, does not guarantee uninterrupted and quality power supply. Many homeowners, seeking energy independence, acquire their own backup source of electricity - generator sets, or mini-power plants. If there is no electricity or interruptions in the power supply periodically occur, then, alas, some of the benefits of civilization (light, heat, hot water) become inaccessible. Under these conditions, autonomous electricity for the home, received from the generator, undoubtedly becomes a means of survival.
The range of electric generators includes both compact portable devices weighing up to 12 kg for solving local problems, as well as powerful units that can fully provide electricity to homes that are not supplied with centralized power supply.
Often, an electric generator is purchased already during construction, when a constant power supply line has not yet been drawn to the construction site.
Autonomous generators generate electricity of 220 or 380 V with a frequency of 50 Hz. The main elements of the unit are the internal combustion engine and the generator itself, which converts mechanical energy into electrical energy. Internal combustion engines in these units can be diesel, gasoline, as well as those that operate on liquefied gas.
Low power generators consume from 1 to 4 liters of fuel per hour.
In the simplest self-contained generators, all nodes (the engine with the electric generator, fuel tank, starting device, etc.) are mounted on a frame of steel pipes. To reduce noise, most devices have silencers. And the more complex ones are mounted in a metal case with a sound-absorbing layer.
Autonomous generators can be equipped with oil level and pressure sensors, as well as thermal protection, which stops the engine in case of a threat of overheating.
There are units that are designed for continuous continuous operation, and there are those that, after several hours of operation (from 4 to 8 hours) should be turned off for a half-hour break.
According to the connection method, they can be divided into two types:
- mobile;
- connected to the electrical network.
Mobile Power - from 1 to 10 kV • A. For comparison, the maximum power consumption for a private house is about 10 kW, and with electric kitchen equipment - about 15 kW. The engine is usually gasoline. For ease of movement, the metal frame on which the generator is mounted is equipped with wheels.
In order for such an aggregate to start generating electricity, you need to start the engine.
Starting the engine can be manual or using an electric starter. Some models have a combined launch option, that is, they can be started manually and with the help of an electric starter.
Electric starters are equipped with a battery.
Sockets are installed on the frame or in the housing of the generators for connecting electrical cables. It can be either only single-phase sockets, or exclusively three-phase, or both.
Sometimes generators are additionally equipped with a voltage regulator.
Associated with a home electrical network. For private and summer cottages units with power from 7 to 30 kV • A are usually used. The engine is most often diesel. These generators are usually installed indoors. It must be dry and have an exhaust pipe through which exhaust gases will be discharged. It is desirable that the room had good sound insulation, as the engine is accompanied by noise.
Such generators are equipped with automatic controls for starting and stopping the engine. In the event of a power outage, the automation starts the engine and connects the generated voltage to the home electrical network.
The delay time for starting the engine (response to a lack of voltage) can be adjusted in the range from several seconds to several tens of seconds. This is necessary to prevent the engine from starting during short-term power outages.
When power is restored, the automation checks the voltage stability for several minutes. If it is stable, the generator is disconnected from the intra-house electrical system, the engine stops, and it enters standby mode.
A wide range of autonomous generators with a capacity of 1 to 2000 kV • A is available on the market. Manufacturers usually indicate the power of generators in kilovolt-amperes (kV-A).
For generators producing single-phase voltage, the power indicated in kVA is equal to power in kW. To calculate the power of a generator producing three-phase voltage (in kW), you need to multiply the value specified in kV • A by a factor of 0.8.
In order to make it easier for you to sort out what power the generator needs to provide autonomous electricity for your house, cottage or summer house, we give below an approximate list of power-consuming equipment, its approximate power
Electricity consumers | Power consumer electricity, kW | Quantity | Total power kW |
---|---|---|---|
Bulbs (lighting) | 0,1 | 15 | 1,5 |
Sockets for portable electricity consumers | 0,2 | 10 | 2,0 |
Well pump | 1,5 | 1 | 1,5 |
Electric stove | 3,5 | 1 | 3,5 |
Washer | 2,0 | 1 | 2,0 |
Refrigerator | 1,0 | 1 | 1,0 |
Freezer | 2,0 | 1 | 2,0 |
Lawn mower | 1,2 | 1 | 1,2 |
Street light bulbs | 0,1 | 3 | 0,3 |
Total | 15,0 |